GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Philadelphia Eagles will unveil their newly upgraded defense when they travel to Green Bay to face the Packers on Monday night.
The Eagles (6-2) are coming off a bye. The previous week, they defeated the New York Giants 38-20, avenging an earlier 34-17 loss. After a 4-0 start, Philadelphia took consecutive defeats but now has won two straight.
Green Bay (5-2-1) is coming off a lackluster 16-13 home loss to the Carolina Panthers that snapped a three-game winning streak.
The Eagles bolstered their defense at the trade deadline, acquiring outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips from the Miami Dolphins, cornerback Michael Carter II from the New York Jets, and cornerback Jaire Alexander from the Baltimore Ravens.
“Talented guys that have played a bunch of good football in the NFL,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said Thursday. “Each one of them bringing a different thing and bringing depth to our positions.”
Philadelphia has won four of its last five games against Green Bay, including a 22-10 victory last season in an NFC wild-card game, when the Eagles intercepted Jordan Love three times. The Eagles also beat the Packers in the opener last season, 34-29, in the first NFL game played in Brazil.
Jalen Hurts threw four touchdown passes in Philadelphia’s victory over the Giants, and Saquon Barkley ran for 150 yards, including a 65-yard TD, before leaving with a groin injury. Barkley practiced in full on Thursday.
Philadelphia wide receiver A.J. Brown, who missed the last game with a hamstring injury, was a full participant at practice on Thursday and is expected to play on Monday. The only Eagle listed as not practicing on Thursday was center Cam Jurgens (knee).
Green Bay has been inconsistent since opening with dominant home victories over the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders. The Packers let a 10-point lead slip away late in a 13-10 loss at Cleveland in Week 3, then salvaged a 40-40 tie at Dallas with a field goal on the final play of overtime the next weekend.
The Packers subsequently won three straight after a bye, but twice they had to rally in the second half.
Green Bay moved the ball against the Panthers but turned the ball over twice, missed a field-goal attempt and converted just 1 of 5 red-zone opportunities into a touchdown.
The Packers endured a crucial loss when tight end Tucker Kraft, who has a team-high six touchdowns among his 32 catches, sustained a season-ending knee injury against Carolina.
“Everybody has to pull a little bit more and do a little bit more,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said Thursday. “I would say that’s just not going to go on one position group. I mean, we need it from everybody from the guys up front to our runners, receivers, and our quarterbacks. So it’ll have to be a collective effort.”
Kicker Brandon McManus has struggled since missing two games with a quad injury. McManus, who made 20 of 21 field-goal attempts last season, is just 11 of 16 this season and 4 of 7 since returning, including 1 of 4 beyond 40 yards.
When McManus was out, free agent signee Lucas Havrisik hit all four field-goal attempts in two games, including a franchise-record 61-yarder. Havrisik is still on the roster, creating some uncertainty.
“We’ll kind of see where Brandon’s at in terms of his health and whatnot and go with who we feel like gives us the best opportunity to go out there and compete and win,” LaFleur said Thursday.
Eagles center Cam Jurgens (knee) and Alexander (knee/coach’s decision) will not play Monday night, while cornerback Jakorian Bennett (pectoral), guard Willie Lampkin (knee/ankle) and linebacker Nolan Smith (triceps) are listed as questionable.
Packers cornerback Nate Hobbs (knee) and defensive lineman Luke Van Ness (foot) have been ruled out. Offensive lineman Zach Tom (back) and receivers Matthew Golden (shoulder), Dontayvion Wicks (calf) and Savion Williams (foot) are listed as questionable.
–Jim Hoehn, Field Level Media
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